"Why have you brought the Lord's assembly into this wilderness for us and our livestock to die here? Why have you led us up from Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It's not a place of grain, figs, vines, and pomegranates, and there is no water to drink!" Numbers 20:4-5
WATER FROM THE ROCK
Do you believe that God is the rock, your rock? (Psalm 18:2) Do you believe that the Living Water of God will flow from the believer who builds their house on the rock? (John 7:38; Matthew 7:24-27) The answer will determine the character of the course of your life.
Many people are familiar with the results of the journeys of the people in the Bible. They know that the red sea was crossed; they know that Jericho fell; they know that Goliath was slain; they know that Jesus was born and resurrected. But most people do not think about the journey itself.
The Israelites in the wilderness were not concerned about the journey, either. They wanted the results... and they wanted them now. Even Moses struck the rock twice, after the Lord said that once would provide the result He promised. I am afraid that many of us traverse life continually, metaphorically, striking the rock.
UNTO HIS ETERNAL GLORY
Even if only begrudgingly, we all have to admit that 1 Peter 5:10 tells it true. We must endure unpleasant things in order to have our character strengthened. God allowed each individual, throughout generations, to have their own agency. People will use their free will for good and for evil. We will use our free will for God and for evil. Because of that, we will sometimes suffer. Our own actions, and others' actions, will cause us to have unpleasant circumstances.
But how will we respond in those moments? Nobody wants to live or hear about those parts of the journey. We were invited, called to God's eternal glory. He has good plans for us, but we have to trust that, and trust that this journey here prepares us for those plans, for that destination.
We must be able to endure and reflect on our situations in faith. We must learn to pray continually, to consistently ask God: what do you want me to learn from this situation? Meanwhile, we must trust and follow Him through it. We must trust that He will provide what we need without repeatedly striking the rock.
With grace, God will help you to be accountable. He will help you to change and grow with love in His heart. And if the problem is the other person, or a circumstance that is out of your hands, God will help you to reinforce the places in your faith that allowed that person, or situation to hurt you or make you afraid. God is our rock and our fortress. He is our outer wall, our defense. He is the edifice that keeps us safe, and He is the Father inside.
When we live to learn from God, life becomes more fruitful. We wake up every day more capable in our attempt at emulation of Jesus and more like a citizen of heaven. Frustration, impatience, and woe are so prevalent in our society today! We are so like the Israelites in the wilderness. At the first hitch in the plan, at the slightest delay, we lament. We complain. We give up. We too stand at the waters of Meribah grumbling. And why? Because we do not trust God.
WHATEVER STATE I AM
Do you want to live life that way? Like the Israelites, stagnant in a wilderness because you lack the faith to learn from the journey and move into the promised land? Listen to the apostle Paul:
Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:11-13